John Greenleaf Whittier said this quote

Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, 'It might have been.

~ John Greenleaf Whittier

So all night long the storm roared on:The morning broke without a sun;In tiny spherule traced with linesOf Nature’s geometric signs,In starry flake, and pellicle,All day the hoary meteor fell;And, when the second morning shone,We looked upon a world unknown,On nothing we could call our own.Around the glistening wonder bentThe blue walls of the firmament,No cloud above, no earth below,—A universe of sky and snow!

~ John Greenleaf Whittier

But dream not helm and harness The sign of valor true, Peace hath higher tests of manhood Than battle ever knew.

~ John Greenleaf Whittier

Methinks I see the sunset light flooding the river valley, the western hills stretching to the horizon, overhung with trees gorgeous and glowing with the tints of autumn -- a mighty flower garden blossoming under the spell of the enchanter, frost.

~ John Greenleaf Whittier